A $2.2 million project will improve 2 intersections on U.S. 26 near Gresham

The public will get a preview next week of state plans for improving two dangerous intersections on U.S. 26.

Multnomah County, Gresham and the Oregon Department of Transportation invite the public to weigh in on the proposed upgrades at an open house Thursday in Gresham. The presentation also will be available on the ODOT website Friday, and comments will be accepted through Jan. 25.

The $2.2 million project's purpose is to improve traffic flow and safety, eliminating crashes that occur when drivers try to turn left from Southeast 267th Avenue and Stone Road onto U.S. 26 or try to cross the highway. Construction, paid with federal and state gas tax revenue, is scheduled to start in late 2013 or early 2014.

"If the public has suggestions about other ways to accomplish these interim goals, that would be of interest for the project teams," said Michael Pullen, Multnomah County spokesman.

More traffic could be on its way to the 267th Avenue intersection with the proposed development of the Springwater Industrial Area. Although there are no immediate plans, Gresham officials intend to develop the site along U.S. 26, which could create 15,000 industrial or industrial-related jobs, according to the city's website.

The upgrades near a budding industrial site should benefit everyone, said Eric Chambers, assistant to the Gresham mayor.

"It needs to be done in a way that meets the city's goal for creating jobs but also meets the needs of the people who use those access points every day," Chambers said.

The proposal is to add a median curb to keep drivers on 267th Avenue and Stone Road from crossing the highway and to restrict left turns from 267th Avenue and Stone Road onto U.S. 26. Drivers still would be allowed to turn left from U.S. 26 onto 267th Avenue and Stone Road and to turn right from the local roads onto the highway, according to ODOT's website.

The project would add right-turn lanes from U.S. 26 eastbound and westbound onto 267th Avenue. There also would be a turnaround northwest of that intersection, which would let westbound drivers reverse direction and head east toward Mount Hood. Construction would not close either intersection.

The construction is a short-term attempt to reduce accidents. From 2007 to 2011, 25 crashes were recorded on U.S. 26 from roughly Southeast Hillyard Road to Stone Road, of which 17 happened at the intersections slated for upgrades. Twelve were in the 267th Avenue area with one fatality, and five were in the Stone Road area with one severe injury. The proposed improvements would have prevented seven of those crashes, according to ODOT.

To address future traffic needs, the city, Multnomah County and ODOT collaborated on a major transportation plan in 2010-11. Funding is not yet available for it, though the city is seeking $26 million in federal funds.

U.S. 26 has a history of traffic trouble on some stretches. Just east of Gresham a safety corridor runs from Sandy to Government Camp. Safety corridors are areas where ODOT advises extra caution because they have higher rates of fatal and serious injury crashes than the state average on similar roads.

Pullen said the proposed improvements would help tired skiers stay safe on their way home from Mount Hood, and the site in question is overdue for modernization. "Right now, it's more like one of those country areas," he said.